Tube Talk's 10 best shows returning in 2012

Yesterday, we named our picks for the ten most exciting shows debuting in 2012 - the likes of Alcatraz, Veep and Aaron Sorkin's new show all made the list, but it's not all about the new kids on the block...

There's plenty of great shows coming back for another round next year too, so here's a list of the returning shows that Tube Talk recommends you look out for.

Sherlock - returns January 1 on BBC OneThe game is on once again in 2012! Sherlock returns to the BBC on New Year's Day with the first of three new adventures, the terrific 'A Scandal in Belgravia'. The daring detective (Benedict Cumberbatch) and partner John (Martin Freeman) tackle their most complex case yet and meet the sultry Irene Adler (Lara Pulver)...

Coming up later in the series, Russell Tovey and a certain canine pop up in 'The Hounds of Baskerville', and Moriarty returns with a vengeance in 'The Reichenbach Fall' - don't miss a single second!

Justified - returns January 17 on FX (US)Quite possibly the coolest man on television, Timothy Olyphant is back as Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens. The third season of this superb FX drama has assembled a fantastic supporting cast - Sin City star Carla Gugino will play Karen Goodall, a figure from Raylan's past, while fine character actors Mykelti Williamson, Neal McDonough and Pruitt Taylor Vince will also appear.

Ultimately though, it's all about the interplay between Raylan and his wildcard chum / nemesis Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins). Whenever Olyphant and Goggins are on screen together, Justified is on fire.

Skins - returns early 2012 on E4The third generation cast of Skins appeared to divide opinion among fans, but here at Tube Talk, we took them to our hearts. In fact, we really enjoyed the light-hearted nature of this year's series... and now we can't wait to see what's coming up for the gang!

What we do know is that we're going to get a brand new character or two, a game-changing jaunt to Morocco and a bunch of stories about "forbidden relationships". We've had our ear to the ground a little bit lately and can confirm that it sounds like we're going to get lots of twisty, shocking, exciting moments. We're a little bit excited.

Being Human - returns early 2012 on BBC ThreeMitchell slain, George an emotional wreck... where can Being Human go from here? With Aidan Turner parading around Middle Earth and Russell Tovey also off to pastures new, it's time for some new blood (no pun intended)!

Irish actor Damien Molony has signed up to play the very English, very upper-class vampire Hal, while werewolf Tom (Michael Socha) will also return. Tube Talk got a glimpse at some series four footage earlier this year and we can confirm that you're in for a treat.

Mad Men - returns March 2012 TBC on AMC (US)/Sky Atlantic (UK)We have gone over a year with no Mad Men now and we're getting a little stir crazy. We miss the whisky-drinking, chain-smoking, womanising, beautifully-dressed Don Draper so much that we've been reduced to watching that YouTube video of him saying: "What" on a loop.

So it's just as well that we're finally going to get a brand new season in 2012. We can't wait to see what's going to happen now that Don's proposed to Megan, for one thing. We've really missed everyone, from Peggy to Joan to Pete - even Betty. We just hope that season five will be worth the wait!

Game of Thrones - returns April 2012 on HBO (US)/Sky Atlantic (UK)The first season of Game of Thrones went above and beyond all of our expectations, so we can't wait to see what the cast will be serving up in the new episodes. There are so many exciting storylines to savour - the fight for the Iron Throne, Daenarys's dragons and Arya's escape, to mention just three.

All that, and a whole bunch of new characters (seriously, we can't list all of the stars joining the show here, because there are just so many). We loved the first season of Game of Thrones so much that we're on the edge of our seats waiting to find out if the new episodes can top it...

The Hour - returns summer 2012 TBC on BBC Two (UK)/BBC America (US)The first series of The Hour picked up a bit of a mixed reaction, but we're still really looking forward to seeing where the program goes next. After all, you can't go far wrong when you've got Romola Garai, Ben Whishaw and Dominic West running the show, can you? (And what's very exciting is that Julian Rhind-Tutt is back as awful but scene-stealing McCain.)

Damages - returns summer 2012 on DirecTV's Audience NetworkThe first of two great shows completing their run in 2012 (see our next entry below), Damages has kept us entertained with its diverting plots, cunning plot twists and multi-layered characters, but next year will see Patty Hewes (Glenn Close) and Ellen Parsons (Rose Byrne) take their final bow...

While we're sorry to see it go, Damages is arguably the kind of show that would be difficult to sustain over dozens of seasons. We're happy that Patty and Ellen's rivalry will reach its climax while the show is still going strong.

Breaking Bad - returns late 2012 on AMCAMC's taut, tense character drama also draws to a close next year with an epic 16-episode run. Again, we'll miss Walter White (Bryan Cranston), Jesse (Aaron Paul) and the show's excellent roster of supporting characters - including our personal favorite Hank (Dean Norris). But the path that Walt chose was only ever going to lead one way - towards darkness...

After the shocking events of the fourth season finale, we can't wait to see how everything turns out in the end. Will Jesse learn the truth about Brock's poisoning? About Jane's death? Are Walt and his partner heading for a fatal showdown? We can't wait to find out!

Obviously, all the third-series stuff is still in the really early stages, so we don't have any idea what could be coming up for the Crawleys and their family, but we do know that it will be set in the 1920s, which is just ripe for excitement. And we'd bet at least a fiver that things aren't going to be as easy for Matthew and Mary as they might appear now...